Dance Lessons
by Ms.Ryce
Summary: A growing collection of Ginny Weasley and Pansy Parkinson one-shots! [Moving the rating up to M for eventual smut.]
1. Dance Lessons

"I can't dance." Ginny said, looking down at her shoes.

"What do you mean you can't dance?" Hermione asked her, puzzled. "What about the Yule Ball your third year? I thought you went with Neville!"

"Oh yes, and what a splendid time that was!" she scoffed. "Neville was a gentleman the entire night, and I kept stepping on his toes. Even ripped the bottom of my dress at one point. Thank Merlin for good ol' reparo…"

Hermione looked her friend up and down, before grabbing the girl by her waist. She placed Ginny's left hand on her shoulder, and then held on to her right hand. Ginny stood up, and the two took a few steps further into Ginny's bedroom.

"Okay, let me lead. Knowing Pansy, she probably prefers leading."

"Knowing Pansy, she probably doesn't." Ginny said, waggling her eyebrows.

"Ginny Weasley!"

"Oh please, like you're such a prude!"

"Yes, but this is Pansy Parkinson we're talking about!"

"And do you think I like hearing details about you and my brother's sex life?"

"Sorry, they just slip out sometimes!" Hermione whispered, her face heating up like a wildfire.

Ginny laughed, squeezing Hermione's shoulder before switching positions with her. Hermione tried pushing her back in an attempt to actually get the dancing started, but Ginny stepped too far back and landed on her bed with a thud.

"This isn't working!" Ginny complained.

"Well, maybe let me lead for a little while at least, so that you can get the hang of it?" Hermione said.

"No, we don't have time for that!"

"Girls? Company's starting to arrive!" Harry called out from downstairs "Mrs. Weasley wants you both down here."

"Coming Harry!" Hermione shouted.

Ginny looked into the mirror and frowned.

"What if I disappoint her?" she whispered. "What if I make a fool of her in front of everyone? 'Mione, I really like her!"

"I know," Hermione said "and she really likes you too. You'll be fine! Just maybe watch me and Ron for a bit before bringing Pansy onto the dance-floor. Then you only have to let the music guide your feet."

"Let the music guide my feet? Hermione, do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?"

"Yes, I do, but that's all I've got at the moment. If we don't hurry up and get down there, your mother is going to go absolutely mental. And, quite frankly, I don't really want to see that. She kind of scares me still, after fourth year."

Ginny rolled her eyes. Her mum had gone a bit bat-shit during the whole Harry/Hermione/Viktor incident back before the war broke out. But that was ancient history, and Hermione's nervousness was honestly silly at this point.

The girls went quickly down to the Weasley's living room, and out into the backyard where the garden party was well on its way to starting. It was hard for Ginny to believe that ten years had already passed since Bill and Fleur's wedding. Ten blessed year almost entirely devoid of Tom Riddle. Ginny still had nightmares about first year…

"Ginny!"

She turned around to see her girlfriend, dressed I a beautiful lilac dress, with silver bracelets and silver earrings to match. Ginny's heart stopped at the sight, and she inhaled sharply. This was her girlfriend! The brave, beautiful, sneaky woman in front of her was all hers!

"Ginny? Darling, are you there? Or have Lovegood's nargles finally got the best of your brains?"

"I'm here!" Ginny laughed. She leaned in towards Pansy and kissed her. Pansy bit her lip and smiled at her. They walked over to a table and pulled out a chair for the other woman, and they sat down.

Pansy had curled her hair. It looked lovely.

"Please tell me your mother decided to serve the wine I recommended," Pansy said. "I know it's more on the pricey side, but the witches who make really do put magic into it! I swear, every time I buy a bottle, I don't regret it. It always makes the night seem so much better!"

"I don't know if she did. I can ask if you want."

"No, that's alright. Here come George and Angelina. If you leave me alone now, I'm doomed!" Pansy joked.

Soon their table was crowded with a rather odd mix of people. George and Angelina sat on Ginny's left, Draco Malfoy and Harry were to Pansy's right, and Hermione and Ron were stuck in between, opposite her and Pansy. Four couples that the fates had somehow decided were fit to see the light of day, eight people who were still alive and thriving. Ginny gave a thought of thanks for each of them. They had lost so much during the war, but at least they had all found each other in the process.

About an hour into the party, Bill stood up and gave a toast to his "beautiful bride of ten years" and to their "perfect children, Victoire, Dominique, and the future little Louis." Everybody cheered, and Bill and Fleur took to the dance floor.

Ginny glanced at Pansy. Neither woman had made a move yet, but she knew it would come, once the music really started going. Anxiety rose in her stomach as she spotted Blaise Zabini and Theo Nott on the other side of the yard. She knew they were friends, but they still made her nervous. The smooth Slytherins who had been a year above her in school. Cho Chang was here somewhere too, the honorary war veteran. Merlin knew how many people had been on the invite list. And they would all know about her failure in just a few minutes.

"Ginny, are you okay?" Pansy asked her.

Ginny looked up and realized only she, Pansy and Harry were left at the table. Draco must have gone to get a drink or something.

"I'm fine…" Ginny said, her eyes shifting between Pansy to Harry.

"What's wrong Gin?" Harry asked her.

Ginny looked Pansy straight in the eyes.

"I can't dance. I didn't pay enough attention to McGonagall in third year, and I didn't care to learn after that! Ask Neville Longbottom, I'll probably break your foot if we try!"

"So, then we won't dance!" Pansy said.

"But I want to dance with you!" Ginny countered.

Her face was almost as red as her hair, she was sure of it. She looked away from the brown eyes that made her heart flutter, and towards the steady green ones that were currently filled with mirth. Why the hell was Harry laughing at her? This wasn't funny!

Pansy just rolled her eyes and dragged her girlfriend out of her seat.

"Well, then, I guess I'd better teach you!"

She gently put her arms around Ginny, and started slowly swaying to the ballad that filled the night air. She moved two steps back, and Ginny moved forward accordingly.

"Okay, basically all you have to do is follow my lead. I know that's probably a hard concept for you to wrap around your Gryffindor brain, but it's honestly not that hard. And then after a few minutes-" her she stopped and spun Ginny around "-I'll spend you around, just like that. Then we repeat the process until the song's over. Seriously, Gin, it's nothing to be worried about!"

"I was more worried I would embarrass you in front of your friends than anything else."

"Oh, screw them! We can dance however we want to! And if that means dancing on each other's toes, then so be it. If you want to dance with me, then we'll dance."

Ginny and Pansy stepped and spun across the floor. And while it would be lying to say that their dancing was flawless, it was still lovely to watch.

Ginny watched Pansy as she twirled her, and her dress spread out around her like sunbeams radiating off the Sun. Pansy's eyes were shining. She was happy. And she was right. Screw them. Screw them all a hundred times over! If it meant that it would make Pansy smile, that it would make the woman she loved happy, then she would dance with her until the world stopped spinning, and they were the only ones left to notice.

"I love you, Pansy Parkinson."

Pansy grinned at her, her cheeks flushing.

"I love you too, Ginny Weasley."


	2. Reacquaintance

The air smelled of smoke and firewhiskey. Five friends sat around a table, talking merrily. They were young, but you could see in their eyes that they knew more than most kids their age. A girl with flaming red hair sat on the end closest to the window, where she could create a makeshift exit if the need arose. A girl with big brown eyes and curly brown hair sat sandwiched in between her and another redhead, the first one's brother. Across from them sat a boy with bright green eyes, covered by thick-rimmed glasses, as well as a strange marking on his forehead. The boy to his left had hair so fair you could barely tell where his skin stopped and it began. The end seat across from the redheaded boy was empty.

"I thought you said you were bringing someone." Harry said.

"I was," Draco answered, "but she decided to meet us here. Honestly, I'm starting to doubt whether she'll come at all. She's been so skittish since… And she's like me. Wasn't exactly on the 'right side' of everything. You four kind of intimidate her."

"Oh please, if she's a Slytherin, I don't believe at all that she'd be afraid of us. None of you lot ever were!" Harry said.

"Except for Blaise Zabini. He tried to slip his hand down my skirt in my fifth year, you lot's sixth. I hexed him so hard, I'm surprised he ever dared smirk in my general vicinity after that. He's alright now though, I suppose" Ginny said.

"Who did what?" Ron asked, choking on his drink.

"He always did have a thing for you" Draco said.

"Why were Slytherin boys so bad at expressing their feelings back at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, only really half-expecting an answer.

"Well, hormones for starters. Also, for a Zabini to mix with a Weasley… Neither family's strictly Sacred Twenty-Eight, but still. It wouldn't have done too well for his reputation" Draco said.

"Yes, but that hardly explains you and Harry" Hermione countered.

"Harry's special" Ron joked.

"Actually, I would agree with that statement!" Harry said.

The table erupted into a loud peal of laughter, and the bar door opened.

* * *

Pansy could feel every eye turned to her as she opened the front door and walked into The Old Crup off Wisteria Avenue. They were just openly staring, looking at the infamous young witch who had dared walk into the old bar. She could practically hear their thoughts.

Death-eater's daughter. Traitor. War criminal.

One pair of grey eyes stared at her with a much-appreciated warmth. Thank Merlin for Draco Malfoy, one of the few true friends she had left.

He had invited her to come out with him and Potter tonight, as some sort of therapeutic meet-up or some other bullshit. She didn't think that had actually meant Potter, Granger, and the two youngest Weasley progenies. A pack of lions sitting with a pair of snakes. Pansy tried shaking the foreboding feeling in her stomach, deciding to focus on Draco instead.

" _That's_ your friend? _Pansy Parkinson?_ " Ronald Weasley blurted out.

Utterly tactless, as per usual.

Pansy walked confidently towards their table, and took the seat right beside Draco. Her loud heels did nothing to push the attention away from her, and neither did her deep-red lipstick, but she chose to ignore that. She also chose to ignore Granger's panicked glance that went between her and Potter. It had been three years, and she hadn't even been an adult witch back then! Why couldn't anyone let the past be just that, the past?

"Hello everyone" Pansy said, curtly. "Draco, Potter, Granger, hero Weasley, pretty Weasley."

"Oi, my brother's a hero as well as pretty, in case you didn't know. He helped kill Voldy himself!" Ginny Weasley joked, trying to ease the tension.

Only Draco and Potter laughed.

"How are you doing, Parkinson?" Potter asked, kindly.

Curse him for always being a bloody Gryffindor! Of course he would be the one to act nicely to her. Draco exhaled in relief, almost imperceptibly. A short silence passed, and Pansy remembered she was supposed to answer.

"Not too well, if I'm honest. Seem trying to turn your sorry ass over didn't quite make me beloved by the wizarding world. Though of course, when you do it yourself…"

"Isn't the weather just terrible?" Granger almost shouted.

All six of them sat in silence for another minute, before Pansy got a waiter's attention and ordered a glass of the strongest firewhiskey they had.

"So, what bring you all here tonight?" she asked them, sipping on her drink. "I came here to see the new happy couple, but why are the rest of you here?"

"That would be my fault." Draco answered.

"Oh, shut up, Malfoy. We all know damn well I'm the one who invited Ron and Hermione. Ginny was a surprise for me too though" Harry said.

"As always" Ginny laughed.

Pansy watched each person separately for a minute, taking the oddness of the situation in. Morgana and Circe, Theo was going to have such a laugh when he heard the story! She'd never hear the end of it!

The music in the bar picked up its pace as the night went on. The awkwardness between everyone faded away as the drinks kept coming and the talk kept happening. Pansy even found herself smiling after her second drink, some strange mix of muggle and wizarding alcohols that made her head spin more than normal. Eventually, the two couples got up and started dancing. Weasley and Granger moving wildly about the floor in weird jerks and twirls, while Draco and Potter looked slightly more dignified, though slightly less inebriated. Now it was just Pansy and Ginny sitting together.

"You know, I meant to call _you_ pretty, earlier" Pansy giggled. "No offense, but Ron's ugly as hell. Most men are ugly as hell. But you're so… fiery!"

Ginny laughed, nodding at her. Pansy's face flushed. Ginny's eyes were so pretty! Her smile was so pretty! Was she always this dazzling? Why hadn't she noticed before now?

"If it means anything, I think you're pretty too" Ginny said.

Pansy smiled.

"I don't even remember why I came here!" Pansy admitted. "Why am I here, Weasley? Weaslette? That's what they used to call you, you know, back at school. Before the Dark Lord took the place over. Stupid prick. Couldn't even control a bunch of _children_!"

"I know, right? He might as well have been a kid himself! His stupid locket, and his stupid diary, and his stupid pet snake! He was such a whiny little bitch! I hate him so much."

"Ugh, I feel the exact same way!"

"Well then," Ginny said, grabbing her glass from off the table. "Here's to one evil dark wizard dead, and a reckless hero to stop all the other's!"

"Hear, hear!"

The two girls drank and sat in a comfortably, talking about this and that. Apparently, Ginny wanted more than a quidditch career. She loved to write too. Pansy told her she used to read trashy muggle literature when she was younger, and thought everything was so realistic. They both laughed again at that. Ginny liked sunflowers and queen-Anne's-lace. Pansy loved red wine and chocolate-covered strawberries.

"Ginevra Weasley, whatever the reason I came here tonight, I'm glad I did," Pansy confessed "if only because I got to really meet you."

"So am I!" Ginny said, grinning at Pansy.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Okay, so I added another chapter! I have decided to take this a little further, and turn it into a series of one-shots revolving around Pansy and Ginny, because I keep thinking about them together, and I've started building this world around them. It's a world and a story I would like to keep sharing with my readers, few as they may be. Hopefully you will all enjoy it as much as I do!**

 **\- Sarah Ryce**


	3. This Was Happiness

Sunlight filtered in through a nearby window. Ginny rolled over onto her side and breathed in the morning air.

It smelled like Pansy.

Suddenly her eyes bolted wide open, and she sat up in alarm. She was not in her bedroom back at the Burrow! She looked to her left and saw a dent in the mattress, where another person must have been sleeping. That other person had most likely been Pansy, seeing as that was the only thing that made sense. Ginny didn't remember much about the night before. It was mostly a haze of chandeliers and firewhiskey. Rose-colored satin brushing against her knee, where her dress had ended. Pansy's eyes really close to hers. Her lips confidently latching onto Pansy's lips. Pansy's hand moving up her thigh, and – holy Hufflepuff! – she'd spent the night at Pansy's!

Ginny cautiously stepped out of the queen-sized bed, pushing aside the pale green comforter and the ivory white sheets. She rolled her eyes. What a Slytherin thing to do. Sure, there were hints of red and gold in her own room at home, but Pansy's room… It might as well have been a luxurious Slytherin dorm room.

She walked out of Pansy's bedroom, and into a hallway with a dark wooden floor and very little lighting. As her eyes adjusted to the change of setting, so did her nose. She smelled coffee brewing, and something warm just come out of the oven. Did Pansy bake? She couldn't remember ever hearing her mention it. Maybe she had house-elves. Merlin knew the richer wizarding families usually did. Malfoy's could be amusing at best, and insufferable at worst…

Her feet padded softly across the floor as she followed the smell of breakfast. The wood beneath her creaked, making Ginny almost jump out of her own skin.

"Ginny?" somebody called out, "Ginevra, is that you?"

Ginny swallowed hard and walked towards Pansy's voice. Which happened to be where breakfast was. Which happened to have been prepared by house-elves. Who happened to work for the entire Parkinson family, who just so happened to be all gathered around the dining room table. Mr. Parkinson, Mrs. Parkinson, little Peony Parkinson, and Pansy.

Mr. Parkinson was utterly absorbed in the morning's _Daily Prophet_. Pansy's baby sister Peony was busy trying to carefully spread raspberry jam over a scone without getting the sticky stuff on either the white tablecloth or her immaculately white dress. Pansy was eyeing her mother cautiously, and Mrs. Parkinson was staring straight at Ginny. Ginny's fight or flight instincts started to rev up, and she probably would have apparated away on the spot if Pansy hadn't looked away from Mrs. Parkinson and towards her.

Pansy smiled at her, her hand resting on the back of an empty seat right next to her.

"Ginny, darling, come sit!" Pansy said. "Don't worry, I already told everyone that you had to stay the night after the little… Incident with your brother Ronald.

So, Pansy had already made up a story for her. Or for them, Ginny corrected. That was a relief. Ginny mechanically moved forward. She sat down by her friend, and scooted as close to Pansy as was politely possible.

"How did you sleep, dear?" Mrs. Parkinson asked her.

Ginny nearly choked on her own breath. There hadn't really been much sleep, if she was being honest…

"Careful there, Ginevra," Pansy said.

"Sorry!"

She took a sip from whatever was in the glass sitting in front of her. Some sort of fruit-juice mix. She swallowed cautiously before answering.

"I slept well, thanks. And thank you for letting me stay the night after… the incident."

"It's not trouble darling!" Mrs. Parkinson replied. "I'm just glad Pansy finally has a girl friend to associate herself with. Even if it is someone of your… Background."

Ginny looked down at her plate and grimaced. The Parkinson clan was an old family. A Sacred Twenty-Eight family. With Sacred Twenty-Eight values. Which made her a mere blood traitor.

"And what sort of background would that be, mother?" Pansy asked, "That of a war hero? If so, then you're right. I certainly should not be hanging around the likes of Ginny Weasley. She's far too high up in society to be friends with me. I'll only pull her down, especially after my little hand-over-Potter stunt."

"Pansy, I can fight my own battles" Ginny said quietly.

"Merlin's beard, stop being so dramatic Pansy!" Mr. Parkinson ordered gruffly, pinching the bridge of his nose before going back to his paper. "It's barely ten in the morning…"

It was the first and the last time he spoke during breakfast. The family continued to eat in silence, and Ginny thought the meal would never end. Finally, when the last of her tea had washed down the last of her toast, she felt Pansy pulling her up by the wrist.

"Mum, I'm just going to go show Ginny that necklace cousin Patroclus sent me!" Pansy said. "We may not be back down anytime soon, so don't come looking for us."

"You always do as you please, Pansy," Mrs. Parkinson said dryly.

Pansy didn't stop to fire back, she just kept dragging Ginny through the halls of Parkinson Place, and away from the dining room.

"What did you tell them happened between Ron and I?" Ginny asked Pansy.

"I said that he got drunk and behaved indecently towards one of your friends, which made you mad, which in turn instigated a brief duel, with you coming out on top."

"Well, asides from the part where I challenge him to a duel, I guess that's not strictly a lie…" Ginny mused, remembering Ron's attempt to slide his hand up Hermione's shirt in front of everyone the night before. The boy really couldn't hold his liquor.

"Which makes it the perfect lie." Pansy said, smirking.

Merlin, she was adorable.

When the two witches got back to the bedroom, Pansy shut the door behind them.

"Muffliato," she cast.

"What's that for?" Ginny asked.

"Just in case we make a lot of noise," Pansy answered.

"In case we-?" Ginny started, before being cut off by a very passionate kiss.

Pansy gently lead her back to her bed and pushed her back onto the plush green comforter. She stopped kissing her for a moment, and looked hesitant.

"That is, if you don't regret last night…"

Ginny looked into Pansy's eyes incredulously.

"Pansy, you wonderful witch, I definitely don't regret last night!"

Pansy grinned, and Ginny pulled her closer by the collar of her blouse. Their lips collided, and all Ginny could hear was their breaths, quick and heavy. She could smell Pansy's perfume, and could feel her hair in her hands. This was it. This was happiness.


End file.
